"World, I've overcome you world"

So...I've been in this weird funk lately..I don't really know why. I've just felt like something is off, but I haven't really been able to figure it out. And besides that, I've been going like 100 mph, so I haven't really had time to think about things...just kinda going through the motions about EVERYTHING...saying incredibly stupid things from not getting enough sleep, etc. We, or at least I, live a pretty comfortable lifestyle...I'm blessed, and i don't deserve it. But I have everything I need. I could probably honestly get by without being depending on God for everything. I know I talk about this all the time, but it's something that God has been bringing up for the past 6 months in my life, and it's an area that He wants me to grow in. I hate it because I really battle with this...I know Jesus wants nothing more than for me to just ENJOY Him, but I go back and forth, between one extreme and the other. ANYWAYS, about this funk..It's been weird..Maybe it's because I haven't been sleeping, or maybe it's because something is just off, but before about a month ago, I feel like I was soo hungry for Jesus, and I feel like everything was going so great, and I had this joy that i can't explain, and anytime someone needed something and came to me for advice or to pray with them, I always knew exactly what to say..But lately, I've just been going off of my own strength, and it's like I don't even know what to say to people, and I've been sooo completely worn out. Everything about my life has been emotional..My heart and my ideas are all over the place...But I need so much more..
But in the midst of all that, I've been reading through the book of Luke because I just want to know what attracted people to Jesus, and how He treated people. This week, this afternoon in particular, God has rocked my world (in a good way :) So, today, I got up at 5:15 and did a sprint triathalon at the RAC on my own, and then I had a slack day at work, so I made a Twitter account, and then my two afternoon classes were canceled. So, me and Colleen were supposed to go up to the church to mail some stuff and do some childrens' stuff, and just annoy everyone there like we probably always do, but we ended up going to this awesome, amazing, authentic Mexican place behind Wendy's, next to curves, called El Rinconcito. They even have a chip bar..nice people... It was so good.. Jon was working out in the sunshine, so we asked him to go with us..and then we ate bolles. Or Jon didn't, but me and colleen did. So, I went home and cleaned, and then I went to Daily Grind for like 3 hours before Bible Study. I read probably the greatest chapter of the bible, in my opinion..Luke Chapter 6....while listening to Sarah McMillan and John Mark McMillan --->http://www.reverbnation.com/artist/song_details/10142 ----anyways, it's all layed out in Luke 6...everything you need. I promise. Go read it. This is what God said to me:

-Luke 6:9: "Then Jesus said to them, "I ask you, which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?"
-Jesus wasnt concerned about rules. He was proactive and positive about providing comfort and healing to those around him.


-Luke 6:12: "One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God."
-Before Jesus chose His 12 disciples, which was a big deal, he went away by himself and prayed, instead of just acting off of His emotions. He wanted to hear from God.


-Luke 6:23:"Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven."
-yay! Jesus wants us to enjoy Him and take great delight in every day.


-Luke 6:30-31:"Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you."
-It's ALL His anyways, not ours.


-Luke 6:35:"But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked."
-Love everyone WITH EVERYTHING you have. I NEED Jesus for this.

-Luke 6:41:"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?"
-self explanatory. We're so quick to judge others. I look at other peoples' faults, so I don't have to think about my own. Thinking about what it really means to be a hypocrite..

-Luke 6:44:"Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers."
-Jesus wants us to live in a way where others will know that they have to have what we have. They'll want it.



-Luke 6:45: "For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks."
-The heart is deceitful, but Jesus can make it pure.


-Luke 6:47: "I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice."
-taking time to stop, enjoy Jesus, hearing from Him, and being proactive


.....So, that is what Jesus showed me today, and I'm glad that He brought John Mark McMillan and Sarah McMillan into my life to keep me company while I studied all of this..

So, this is kinda like my "Thankful Thursday" that I copied from Rachael, but I have a lot to be thankful for sooo..
--I am falling more and more in love with my room mates...
--I love how I can be sitting in my room, writing this, and I hear Lady Marmalade coming from Natalie's room and i can run in there and have a dance party...
--I love how I can speak Spanish to Colleen like we're pros..and have crazy moments and extremely awkward moments, and go to daily grind and she listens to me while I talk her head off..and we have the same spiritual gift of mercy, so its just meant to be.
--I love how I've had awesome talks with Natalie, and she is such a good leader, and she won an award tonight..and so did Rachael
--My roommate Karley Weiner (pronounced Winer, not weiner)
--Hilton Head Beach weekends
--El som with Rachael
--I love how I can be so extremely tired, like about to fall asleep, and then i walk into a room and the first thing I hear is "I don't have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way He loves..", and once again I am in love...followed by some Shane and Shane
--I love how my bffl Bethany Dillon, 7 months pregnant, sat next to me and told Dan that I'm pretty...or at least he told me she did. Thanks Beth!
--My church and everyone in it, and how I am always encouraged
--I love how God wakes me up at 5 15 and I can just go swim, bike, and run and just do my own little sprint triathalon, and then i can eat everything in sight, especially good mexican
--Rebecca Colleen Cowart and Jon Irvan for eating authentic Mexican with me today
--I love how Leigh was excited to run and do Insanity with me, and so now I have an Insanity friend to workout with.
--I love how i have a sweeet, considerate friend like Anna Glisson to bring me donut balls while Im studying, even though she was stressed too..
--I love how I have a super smart friend named Ashley Fletcher that is going to pass all of her nursing classes this semester, because we need more nurses like her, and she believes PSALM 37:4-7 with her whole heart AMEN!
--I love how I have a friend named Daniel Stall who is probably the most encouraging person I have ever met, and has shown me so much over the past 6 months what it means to truly love people, and simply see people with love and mercy and kindness like God sees them.. and always there to call me out when I begin to be negative..
--Unlimited amounts of trail mix on earth day
--Seeing some wonderful friends and celebrating LACEY TOOTHMAN'S BIRTHDAY!
--Luke Russett..for buying my $4 ice cream from IHOP
--the fact that I can dance in my room to Ke$ha "you're love is my drug" about 5 1/2 times in a row
--Daily Grind Thursdays
--I graduate in 2 weeks, but i will NOT grow up
--New TOMS on Monday (even though i had no business buying any more shoes)
--Pool and podcasts
--Kate Martin
--Tammy Gann for being so awesome and for always being so encouraging and teaching me so much
--the fact that I am going to stay in a cabin in the middle of nowhere in the mountains/lake this weekend with 8 of my very sweet friends
--the fact that I'll get to spend the day Saturday with my bffl Beth Moore! and I get to hear her talk about something that came at the best time!
-Im thankful for everyone else in my life too that I have been blessed to see over the past week!


There's more too, but that's about all i can think of for this exact moment...


In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.- John 16:33 NKJV

"Well all I have to say
About these serious days
And the condition of my heart
Is there both still as much a mystery to me
And they both get so hard
When I forget what its like just to die in your eyes
And when I live just to live n your arms
Well they say that a man can never go home
But I just can't get out of your front yard

What if I could be
Something more than me
They say that I got a disease
Of the human kind
Maybe all I know is
In your arms and in your eyes
I'm more than alive."--John Mark McMillan

As some of you know, I’m graduating college in May, and it’s been awesome to look back and see all of the opportunities that I have had over the past four years while I‘ve been at Georgia Southern. On June 27th through July 16th, I will be going back to Lima, Peru with Crosspoint Ministries for three weeks. The area we are going to is a suburb of Lima called San Juan de Luriganco. San Juan de Lurigancho is Peru’s poorest, most populous district. The people we will be serving are among the poorest of the poor, and most eat only one meal per day.

I went to Peru last October, and it was literally the best week of my life, and the experiences that I had in that short week changed me. This trip will be similar to the one from last fall. I'm really excited to be a part of the same things and serve some of the same people from the last trip. I will be able to build on the relationships and friendships that have already been formed, while meeting new people as well.

For the first week, I will be down there with a team of about 30 people. We will have the opportunity to serve and spend a lot of time with sexually and physically abused women and young children. Abuse is a huge problem in Peru, and it affects the majority of women there. I observed that the government in Peru is corrupt, and the women have no rights. The stories I heard last October from the women and children broke my heart. These women have had to endure a lot of pain, but because of God’s grace and mercy, they have been given hope and a second chance. I want for them to continue to see that God hasn’t forgotten about them and that He loves them. Over the past couple of years, God has built up a passion in my heart for issues like sexual exploitation and abuse, and my heart has continued to break more and more for women who have had to endure it. We’ll get to serve, minister, and pray with these women. We will also get to spend time with children from two different orphanages. We’ll get to visit and help out at a medical clinic, do construction, and we will get to hang out and minister to kids around the city. Each evening, we will be putting on a conference at the same church that we spent time with last October. We will also put on a youth rally at another church as well.

For the next two weeks, I will be staying with the family of the pastor we are serving with down there. I will get to help his wife and children, and I will assist him at the church and around the community. Their house and the church is right in the middle of the different ministries, so I’ll hopefully be able to also spend more time with the women from the shelter and the children from the orphanages as well as the people from the church and community. I’m excited about everything that I will get to be a part of while I am down there, and I’m eager about seeing what all God has in store for those three weeks. I know three weeks is still such a short time, but it will be the longest amount of time that I have ever been out of the country, and it is a next step for me to see if this is something that I God has for me for long term.

My heart is with Peru because on the one hand, I have never been to a place as destitute as San Juan de Lurigancho. However, on the other hand, I have never seen so much HOPE and dependence on God as I did while I was there. In the midst of a lot of poverty, brokenness, hurt, and despair, the people there do have a lot of hope. There is so much potential for Lima, and I want to be a part of it. I found out that out of the 8 million people in Lima, only 2% report to having a true relationship with Jesus Christ. However, I know that his can change because of the love and compassion that the people there have. They just need people to reach out to them, love them, tell them about the hope and future that God has for them (Jeremiah 29:11). However, in San Juan de Lurigancho, there is very little help from people outside of the community. In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus says to go to all of the corners of the earth and to teach them everything He has commanded.

When I left Lima last October, I knew that I would be coming back. I feel like the week I spent there was only the beginning of what all God is doing down there. I know that MUCH GREATER things are still to be done there, so I want to go. I want these precious people to know that our God is a loving and compassionate God (psalm 86:15). I want them to know that although they have been hurt and broken, God saw their trouble, and HIS LOVE NEVER FAILS (Psalm 136), and He makes even the bad and painful things that happen to us work out for our good (Romans 8:28). Finally, I want them to know that they are redeemed by God because of His love and faithfulness and that He will restore them (Exodus 15:13). God has revealed these things to me while I have been in college, and other people have helped in showing me that. I’ve been so fortunate, and I feel that these people in Peru should have the same opportunity to experience His love. I want others to experience and know what I know, especially those that are broken and hurting. That is what I want to devote my life to, whether it is in America or internationally. I am seeking to be more independent in my identity with Christ, instead of relying on those around me. I know that in order to do this, I need to be looking for ways for God to humble me, so I am praying that He will do just that on this trip!

We need your help! I want you to be a part of our team by praying for us. I believe that God answers the prayers of those who seek Him, and I’m asking you to commit to praying for us in several ways: for God to equip our team, for the people we will be in contact with, the government in Peru, our safety, etc.

Also, the cost to cover my trip for the three weeks is $2000. I need to have the entire amount raised by the end of May. I have a long way to go, but I know that He will continue to provide. Whether it is praying for us, giving financially, or both, I am asking that you would pray about being on our team. I’m really excited, and I love talking about what God is doing with this trip, so if you have any questions you can call me at (912) 660-2305 or email me at Alison101887@bellsouth.net. Checks are tax-deductable and should be made out to “Crosspoint Ministries.” After praying about it, if you feel led, then checks can be given to me or mailed to me at: Alison Gay. 109 Herty Dr. Statesboro, GA 30458. Thank you so much for reading this, and for praying for Peru. I can’t wait to see how God is glorified through this trip. You can also look at my pictures on Facebook from my last trip to Peru:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/album.php?id=69703231&aid=2043360
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/album.php?id=69703231&aid=2043365